Friday, February 29, 2008

Things that cut into my yarn budget: A New Cell Phone

A funny thing happened on the way to Bluebonnet on Wednesday. I bought a new cell phone.

I actually never made it to Bluebonnet. My phone (the one on the left) had been dying for the past week or so. When I charged the battery, it would only last a short time. I passed a Sprint store on my way out to Cedar Park and decided to drop by. I ended up leaving with a new phone (the one on the right.)

It's a fairly simple phone. It has a camera, but no other frills to speak of. I spent about $40. After the rebate, it will cost me about $10. (I signed another 2-year contract with Sprint.)

There was an $18 activation fee, but in the long run, I'll probably save money. My new plan is actually better than the last one. I didn't pay for any frills there either. I still pay 20 cents per text ,I rarely send text messages) and I didn't pay to send the pictures via phone.

I need to buy a cord so I can download my phone pictures. I took a few at Gauge today. (They got in some Handmaiden!)

I spent a long time at the Sprint store, where the salesman referred to me as "Ma'am" when he talked to his boss. ("Ma'am would like to change her phone number." "I want to make sure Ma'am does not lose her contacts." etc.) My phone was dying, and they had trouble transferring my phone numbers to my new phone. I finally said I'd just take it home and do it myself. For a while I was worried I'd never get my contacts, because I couldn't keep the phone on long enough to access my contacts. (Despite the fact it was supposed to be fully charged.)

I'm actually glad I did it manually. I left behind so many old numbers. It was a way of letting go of the baggage of old bosses, old landlords, old insurance companies, old doctors and other people I'm glad to be rid of.

I changed my number because I was still using a Florida area code, even though I 've been back in Texas for about a year and a half. If you need my new number, e-mail me at sallyvillarreal AT gmail DOT com and I'll send it to you.

My last phone was...unusual. I've had it since 2004. It got weird looks, even when it was new. It was supposed to be extra tough, so I'm a little nervous about the lack of thick plastic and rubber on this new phone. I think it's time to make a cell phone case.

There's also the matter of ring tone. After four years, I was trained like one of Pavlov's dogs to jump every time I heard the Muppet Show theme. Now I'm trying to find a new one. I may break down and pay to download one. I think it's worth it to have a ring tone that you know for sure is your own.